View a FREE sample

This test consists of 15 multiple choice questions and 5 short answer questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. In "Slaves," what accounts for the bad behavior of slaves?
(a) The bad treatment they receive.
(b) Their diet.
(c) Their innate barbarity.
(d) Their confined quarters.

2. What is Montaigne's general view of humanity?
(a) Humans are vain and shameful.
(b) Humans are courageous and bold.
(c) Humans are murderous animals.
(d) Humans are noble and wise.

3. What kind of social company does Sei Shonagon express hatred for in "Hateful Things?"
(a) Company that eats all of one's food.
(b) Company that asks prying questions.
(c) Company that does not talk.
(d) Company that will not leave.

4. At what age did Montaigne begin writing?
(a) 25.
(b) 12.
(c) 59.
(d) 38.

5. Who raised Charles Lamb?
(a) His older sister.
(b) The state.
(c) His uncle.
(d) His grandmother.

6. When was Charles Lamb born?
(a) 847 A.D.
(b) 1903 A. D.
(c) 1775 A. D.
(d) 1175 A. D.

7. In Montaigne's "On Some Verses..." essay, what opinion does he express about the sexes?
(a) Men and women are essentially the same.
(b) Men do not possess emotional excess, which is the chief flaw of women.
(c) Men are made for war, and women are made for love.
(d) Men are far superior to women in all intellectual areas.

8. In "On Noise," what is necessary for a person to ignore the noise of the outside world?
(a) One must venture into the world in order to quiet it.
(b) Excellent earplugs.
(c) Inner peace.
(d) A goal to concentrate on with singular focus.

9. What place does Seneca describe in "Scipio's Villa?"
(a) The farm.
(b) The palace.
(c) The arena.
(d) The temple.

10. What kind of family background did Montaigne come from?
(a) Both his father and mother's families were well-off and prominent.
(b) His mother was rich, but his father came from a poor family.
(c) His father was rich, but his mother came from a poor family.
(d) Montaigne came from a poor background.

11. Who is the subject of Chapter 2 in the book?
(a) Mark Twain.
(b) Seneca.
(c) Kenko.
(d) Michel de Montaigne.

12. Why did William Hazlitt decide to abandon painting for poetry?
(a) His wife died, and he suffered a mental breakdown.
(b) His father forbade him to practice painting.
(c) He met a snobbish painter who disillusioned him.
(d) He met two famous poets.

13. When was Seneca the Younger born?
(a) 3 A.D.
(b) 300 B.C.
(c) 1420 A.D.
(d) 525 A.D.

14. According to Montaigne, what is the source of the difference between men and women?
(a) Custom and education.
(b) Emotion.
(c) Genetics.
(d) Divine intervention.

15. What is Michel de Montaigne considered to be?
(a) The greatest essayist who ever lived.
(b) The greatest playwright who ever lived.
(c) The greatest biographer who ever lived.
(d) The greatest poet who ever lived.

Short Answer Questions

1. In addition to a personal essayist, what kind of essayist is Samuel Johnson.

2. What does Montaigne conclude in "Of a Monstrous Child?"

3. What political party did Abraham Cowley support?

4. Which place did Charles Lamb occupy amongst his siblings?

5. Why is Plutarch consoling his wife in "Consolation to His Wife?"

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 523 words (approx. 2 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample